Plate-holding device.



F. MESEL.

PLATE HOLDING DEVICE.

APPLICATION HLED Nov. 15, 1915.

Patented N ov. 14, 1916.

Haggis Hemel 'uEiTEp sTATEs PATENT oEEioE.

FRANCIS MEISEL, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO MEISEL PRESS 6v MANU- FACTURING COMPANY, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION 0F MASSA- CI-IUSETTS.

PLATE-HOLDING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. i4., 1916.

T0 all whom t may concern Be it known that I, FRANcis MEisEL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Plate-Holding Device, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a plate holding device particularly designed Yfor holding stereotype or other printing plates in position in a. printing press.

In the embodiment herein shown the device is designed for holding curved plates upon a printing cylinder but my invention is equally well adapted for holding straight plates upon a flat printing bed. The dimensions of such plates vary within wide limits and it is necessary to provide for securing a plate of any size upon any portion of the supporting member.

It is the object of my invention to provide improved devices for thus securing a printing plate to a supporting member, said devices combining simplicity of construction and economy of manufacture with increased convenience and efficiency in operation.

With this general object in view, important'features of my invention relate to the provision of a supporting member having a plurality of under-cut parallel grooves formed therein within which clamping blocks are slidably retained and to the further provision of improved devices for forcing the clamping blocks against the edges of the printing plate. In the preferred form of my invention, said devices include a thrust plate for each block, adapted to be received in any one of a plurality of transverse slots intersecting each of vsaid undercut grooves substantially at right angles. Suitable provision is made for exerting pressure between the thrust plate and the block to force the block firmly against the edge of the printing plate.

My invention further consists in certain arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out .in the appended claim. t

A preferred form of my invention is shown in the drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a top plan view of a portion of a printing cylinder; Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation taken along the line 2-2 in Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the clamping block and the thrust plate which coperates therewith; Fig. .tris an end elevation of the clamping block; Fig. 5 is a sectional view thereof taken along` the line in Fig. 3; and Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the thrust plate.

As shown in the drawings I provide a printing cylinder 10 of the usual dimensions and irfthe outer surface of said cylinder I form a plurality of parallel undercut grooves 11 extendimgg` axially the full length of the cylinder. For each groove I also provide a series of transverse slots 12 intersecting the Vgrooves substantially at right angles and extending beyond each side wall of the groove. Y

The slots are shown as segmental in out line and may be conveniently formed by forcing a milling cutter of suitable dia-meter into the surface of the cylinder at proper intervals. The manner in which the slots are formed and the exact outline of the slots is however, immaterial and they may be constructed in any convenient manner. It will be understood that the entire surface of the cylinder is provided with the parallel grooves 11 and the intersecting slots 12. Y

For holding the plate to the surface of the cylinder I provide a plurality of clamping blocks 18 slidable in the grooves 11 and having their side surfaces inclined to cooperate with the side walls of the grooves whereby the blocks are retained in position therein. Each block 13 is provided with a flat surface 14:' adapted to underlie the edge of the printing plate P and is also provided with a projecting lip 15 adapted to engage the beveled edge of the plate P. An adjusting screw 16 is screw-tlireaded into each block 13, said screw being provided with a pinion 17 and with a projecting end portion 18. The portion 18 lits loosely within a recess 19 in a thrust plate 20, the plate 20 being adapted to fit into any one of the transverse slots 12.

As shown in Fig. 6 the recess 19 may be made double so that the recess will suitably engage the projection 18 without regard to which particular edge of the plate 20 is first inserted in the slot 12.

Reference to Fig. 2 will show that the teeth of the pinion 17 project above the surface of the cylinder 10. Any suitable hand tool (not shown) may be provided for cooperating with the teethof the pinion for turning the screw 16. Y

Having described the construction of my improved plate holding device the operation thereof will be obvious. 1n order to secure a plate upon any desired portion of the cylinder surface the plate is positioned upon the cylinder and a suihcient number of clamping blocks 13 are inserted at the ends of selected grooves 11 and are pushed along the grooves until the lips 15 thereof engage the edges of the printing plate. Thrust plates 20 are then inserted in the nearest slots 12 and the screws 1G are turned to unkscrew them from the blocks 13 until the projections 18 enter the recesses 19 of the corresponding plates 20. The outer face of the pinion 17 then firmly engages, the side of the thrust plate and further slight rotation of the pinion 17 and screw 16 will cause the clamping plates to firmly engage and hold the printing plate P.

It will thus be seen that my improved plate holding device is effective to hold the plate upon any desired portion of the cylinder and that the adjustment of the clamping devices is most quickly and readily performed. It will also be seen that the clamping devices occupy very little room at the side of theplate so that additional plates may be positioned upon the same portion of the cylinder and only slightly removed from the plate first positioned.

Having thus described my invention it will be evident that changes and modiications may lie-made therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope thereof as set forth in the claim, and I do not wish to be otherwise limited by the details herein disclosed, but

Vhat I claim is:

A plate holding device comprising a supporting member having an undercut groove of substantial rwidth formed therein, and having a plurality of narrow segmental slots intersecting' said groove transversely, a clamping block corresponding in cross sectionr to the section of said undercut groove, slidable in said groove,`and having a lip to engage an edge of the printing plate, a thrust plate adapted to be inserted in any one of said transverse slots, an adjusting screw having a pinion formed thereon adjacent one end thereof, said screw fitting a threaded recess in said clamping block and at one end engaging said thrust plate, whereby said plate sustains the pressure exerted on said block and screw, and the diameter of said pinion being less than the width of the block and of the undercut groove, whereby said block, rscrew and pinion are freely slidable longitudinally in said groove when the thrust plate is removed.

FRANCIS MEISEL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents. Washington, D. C. 

